Private Equity Firm Raises $200M for ‘Circular Economy’ Fund

New York-based private equity and impact fund manager Closed Loop Partners has raised more than $200 million for a fund focused on the “circular economy”.

Closed Loop Partners said in a statement that the Closed Loop Leadership Fund now had $475 million in total assets, making it the firm’s largest launch to date. It will invest in companies that aim to reduce waste in landfills by recycling and repurposing waste materials.

The fund has already invested in more than 60 portfolio companies, which aim to keep packaging, organics, electronics and apparel out of landfill sites and the reduce overall carbon emissions. Existing portfolio companies already keep more than “920,000 tons of recycled materials in play per year”, Closed Loop said.

The firm also estimated that its portfolio companies had helped to avoid 6.8 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions through recycling and reusing materials.

Investors in the fund include KIRKBI, the Danish investment office linked to the owners of Lego, along with BlackRock’s private equity arm and Danish housing group Realdania. Other investors include asset manager Nuveen and corporations such as Nestlé, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Unilever, and SK Geo Centric.

Over the past eight years, Closed Loop Partners has deployed capital across multiple asset classes to accelerate the transition to a circular economy, while driving returns for investors.

Ron Gonen, founder and CEO of Closed Loop Partners, said: “Since its launch in 2019, the Closed Loop Leadership Fund, our buyout strategy at Closed Loop Partners, has made significant strides acquiring and building businesses at the forefront of developing circular supply chains at scale.

“This final close of the fund, which includes a number of leading investors, is a milestone for the development of the circular economy.”

The circular economy concept aligns closely with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 12, which targets sustainable consumption and production patterns to reduce waste and carbon emissions.